New Baby? Here Are the Duds You Need

One of the first things you learn as a new mom is that nothing with a baby is what you expect it to be, and so it was with the dress I bought for my first day back at work following my maternity leave.

I was pretty excited about my purchase of a chambray dress that zipped up the back, but upon seeing me, my boss (herself a mother) exclaimed, "How are you going to pump in that? You'll have to completely disrobe!" (Since then, "Can I easily access my boobs?" is the main criteria all new clothes need to meet. I recently forced myself to walk away from an adorable Max Mara LWD—on sale, no less!—because it made doing just that impossible.) Needless to say, I went home that day and re-examined the contents of my closet in a whole new way.

While I was able to make some pieces work (like wrap dresses and button-downs) others were entirely off-limits for the foreseeable future. And lest I wear the same five outfits every week, I headed out on another shopping trip, and luckily hit upon a few retailers specifically for nursing moms that manage to keep things chic and cost-effective in that you will definitely want to wear these pieces again and again. Because, as you might have heard, a new baby—let alone a new wardrobe—is more expensive than buying three top-of-the-line Birkins.